Oil-sand flooder.



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uuuuuuuu UNITED STATES ATENT OEEIcE.

AARON E BARNHART, OF MILLERSTOWN, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR TO OSCAR Z. BARNI-IART, OFlVIILLERSTOWN, PENNSYLVANIA.

VOIL-SAND FLOODER.

lSPECIElCA'IION forming lpart of Letters Patent No. 692,758, Vdated February 4, 1902.. Applicationled May 20, 1901. Serial No. 61,112. (No model.)

To all lwhom it 11i/cry concern-.-

Be it known that I, AARON E. BARNHART, a citizen of the United States, residing at Millerstown, in the county of Butler, State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in OiLSand Flooders,

of which the following is a specification, ref-V erence beinghad therein tothe accompanying drawings.

This invention relates to oil-sand looders, and particularly to a fitting or attachment adapted for application tothe ordinary construction of suction-pipes used in oil-wells.

The invention has for an object to provide a simple and economical construction of parts occupyingthel least possible amount of space and adapted to be applied below the working barrel ot'fthe suction-pipe ofan oil-well, so as to prevent the exhausting of the oil-supply and the consequent action of the air u pon the oil-bearing strata of sand, which causes a thickening of the oil, thereby clogging the l strata and seriously diminishing the pumping capacity thereof.

A further object of the invention is to provide such an attachment which will prevent the collection of the gas either beneath the working barrel of the pump or beneath the levelv of the oil Within the well.

, pended claims.

In the drawings, Figure 1 isa side eleva; tion of 'my attachment applied beneaththe ings.

' Other objects and advantages of the inven-A tion will hereinafter appear in the following,y

description, and thenovel features thereof will be particularly pointedA out in the apsprayer located at the lower end of a suctionpipe. Fig. 2 is avertical section. a horizontal section on the line 3` 3 of Fig. 1. Fig. 4 is a detail perspective of the coupling for the iiooder attachment, 'and Fig. 5 is a detail elevation of a modified form of the invention.

Like letters of reference indicatelike parts throughout the several figures of the draw- While thisinvention is applicable to dierent forms'of suction-pipes and oil-elevating devices, it is particularly adapted and constructed for use in connection with the WorkingV barrel and sprayer mechanism shown in Fig. 3 is:

my prior patent, No'. 464,785, of December 8, 1891, and with the rivet-catching device disclosed in my'PatentNo." 665,772, of January s, 1891. f

In the drawings the letterA designates the shell or cylinder containing the sprayer mechanism A', which is similar in construction to that disclosed in'niy patent above mentioned Y and having at its lower portion the foot-valve 6o A2, as therein disclosed. .The upper portion of this sprayer mechanism is provided with the rivet-catching device A'supported within a casing,which is suitably threaded at the opposite ends for coupling to a suction-pipe A4 and..` the shell A., The parts j ust described comprise the Working barrel of mypumpin g mechanism, and their operation in the present instance is similar to that disclosed in the patents mentioned. Thelower portion of this cylinder Ais 7o suitably threaded, and connected thereto is a cylindrical coupling B, forming a portion of the improved flooding device. This coupling is provided atone side between its ends with an inlet B', extending u Ward parallel with 75 the length of the coupling, and is suitably threaded at its opposite ends, one of which engages the casing A and the other the an- Chor-block section O, which may be of any usual construction and length, either solid, 8o

Fig. 1, or hollow, as at C', Fig. 2.

Connecting with the inlet 'B' for the coupling B and communicating with the oil-chamber therein isa vertically-disposed pipe D,

connected at its upper end by a return-bend 8 5 D' with a depending suction-pipe D2, perforated at its lower portion in the usual manner, as shown at D3. The pipe vD in passing upward lies between two of the outlets from the sprayer device A', and the depending leg 9o D2 of said pipe is similarly disposed, so as not to interfere with the spray from said device. This intake-pipe extends'upward above the sprayer device and working barrel and adjacent to the return-bend D'v is provided 95 with an air-inlet D4, so that when the oil falls belowr this level the air may enter the intakepipe and prevent the further lifting of oil by the pump, Which if continued would exhaust the Well. ber formed by the coupling B, connected to the working barrel and anchor, is completely It will also be noted that the cham-:imo

closed with the exception of the inlet connection B, so that the feed for the pump is only through the pipes D2 and D into the coupling B.

As shown in Figs. l and 2, the intakepipes are provided with the aperture DVl to regulate the level to which the oil maybe pumped, while in the modification shown in Fig. 5 this aperture is omitted and the length of pipe continued to a height substantially equal to the lifting height of the pump. In this form when the oil-level within the well is at its proper height the oil will rise in the leg D2 of the intake-pipe to a sufficient height to permit the pumping action through the pipe D into the coupling B. As soon as the oillevel falls below the predetermined line in this pipe D2 the distance between the level of oil and the working barrel of the pump will be such that the oil cannot be raised thereby.

It should be explained that under ordinary conditions the diameter of oil-wells varies from five inches to six and one-fourth inches, and it is therefore an element ot' essential importance that any flooder-pipe connections must be contained within the smallest possi-` ble space, so as to be inserted in the well and to Operate therein Without interfering with the operation of the other parts or preventing the withdrawal of the tubing when it becomes necessary. It is also very important in this class of devices that the spraying action should be continued beneath the level of the body of oil within the well or within the body thereof, so that the oil-sand is protected from the air by the liquid in the well while the spraying-jet agitates the body of liquid, so as t0 produce the most desired feeding action, and removes from the sand any clogging substances which may collect during the flow of the oil. It will therefore be seen that there is an important and essential relation between the use of an automatic spraying device and means for maintaining a level of oil above the injection openings from said sprayer. Another difficulty occurring in the pumping of oil-wells is the collection of gas beneath the body of oil, whereby the oil is supported at a false level, and as soon as the gas escapes the level of the oil suddenly drops, so that the well becomes exhausted before the pumping action can be stopped. Vith the present invention the perforations D3 from the intake-tube D2 permit the escape of gas through opening D in said tube, so as to establish an equal pressure of the air and gas upon both the upper and lower surfaces of the oil. In the pumping operation it will also be seen that the intake disposed above the end of the anchor C first removes from the well the water beneath the body of oil, which can bc discharged from the pump in any desired manner, and then continues the pumping of the oil so long as the level of the same continues above a predetermined line. It will also be observed that when it is used in connection with a spraying device it is essential that the oil shall be discharged from the intake-pipe in to a closed cham ber beneath the spraying device and working barrel, as toadmit the air above said sprayer would defeat the operation of the same. To prevent injury to the end D3 of the intake-pipe, it does not extend tothe bottom of the well or beyond the anchor-section, as injury to the intake would occur if so extended.

It will be obvious that changes maybe made in the details cf construction and configuration and of the working barrel to which the coupling is applied without departing from the spirit of the invention as defined by the appended claims.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new isl. In an oil-sand flooder, the combination with a suction-pipe and working barrel having a foot-valve, of a coupling secured at the lower end thereof to form a receiving-chamber, an anchor-section at the lower end of said coupling, an inlet communicating with said coupling between its ends, an intake-pipe connected to said inlet and extending above the level of said foot-valve, and a suction-leg to said intake extending below said coupling; substantially as specified.

2. Acoupling fora working barrel and anchor-section of an oil-sand flooder comprising an open cylindrical section threaded at opposite ends, and an intake connection extending parallel with the outer periphery of said coupling toward one end thereof and communicating at its opposite end with the coupling between its ends; substantially as specified.

3. In an oil-sand flooder, the combination with a working barrel containing a sprayer device and having a threaded lower end, a coupling threaded to said end and to an anchor-section, an inlet communicating with said coupling between its ends, an intake-pipe connected to said inlet and having an opening therein above said sprayer device, and a suction-leg to said intake extending below the point of connection with said coupling; substantially as specified.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

AARON E. BARNIIART.

NVitnesses: i

GEORGE P. TADDER, FREDERICK W. JAcxsoN.

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